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Saturday, February 14, 2015

Code Black Coffee

February 7, 2015

We've had a fewnicebreakfasts at Brunswick's Code Black Coffee so figured we'd give their new North Melbourne branch a go on our way to the Queen Victoria Markets. It's another warehouse refit, although this younger sibling lets in more light and offers some cheery splashes of colour. With a bare floor, high-energy tunes and enough customers for a wait list, it's loud. The menu is shorter and lacks the vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free symbols that so impressed us in Brunswick. Instead there's just some small text suggesting you "chat to your server". Gluten-free bread is available, and it looks like vegans might be constrained to salad.

After a brief wait in the sun, we were seated at a small table on the mezzanine level. Michael cooled down with an iced latte ($4.50). From there we were in for a bit of a wait for food, though our waiter did regular rounds topping up our water.

Michael ordered black beans with a fried egg, jalapeno and cheese cornbread and grilled lime ($12). He found the cornbread a little dry and lacking in cheese, but deemed the plate good value.

The heat held me back from the salted apple caramel hotcakes and I trialled the seasonal fruit plate ($12), which was interspersed with coconut cream and cinnamon maple coconut chips. Code Black earn points for pulling together something varied and vegan-friendly, but didn't match the sophisticated fruit breakfasts I've enjoyed at Wide Open Road.

Although the veg options seem fewer than at Code Black Brunswick, they also seem a little cheaper. Our experience here didn't impress me as deeply as the neighbouring Elceed and Twenty & Six cafes, but the service was chirpy and the food was pleasant. I might still make room for those hotcakes next time I'm headed to market.

Accessibility: The ground level is flat and spacious, while the mezzanine involves narrow stairs, crowded seats and backless stools. We ordered at our table and paid at a low counter. We didn't visit the toilets.